Big Kev, rapper and ex-con, fights for hip-hop redemption

Hampton rapper Kevin "Big Kev" Herndon emerged from prison last month 150 pounds lighter, but still feeling big enough to take on the world.

"I feel I have a new start," he said. "I'm a better person, a stronger person. Sitting in prison for six years gives you a different outlook on everything in life.

"I really believe this is my shining moment," said Herndon, who a decade ago weighed as much as 350 pounds and seemed poised on the brink of a national hip-hop career. "Everyone has a moment that defines who they are. This is it for me. Prison didn't break me. I really believe that everything I've wanted and worked so long for is finally going to unfold."

Herndon will need all the optimism he can muster to face challenges ahead of him. The 35-year-old rhyme-smith went to prison for crimes committed in 2006: possession of cocaine and marijuana with intent to distribute and several firearms charges.

As a convicted felon, he'll face struggles and limitations for years to come. He says he's not worried, though. He says he is physically and mentally prepared to do what needs to be done to finally win in the rap game.

This time, he says, he'll do it the right way.

"I made some bad decisions, some bad choices," Herndon said. "I blew every opportunity in the world for a few thousand dollars. I've got to be the smartest, dumbest person around."

'I waited forever'

Hampton Roads is known for producing major hip-hop and R&B acts including Missy Elliott, the Clipse and Pharrell Williams. Big Kev never approached that level of success, but he was knocking on the door before his legal meltdown.

He's been rapping since at least 1996 when he emerged as part of a Buckroe-based collective called Sertified Dope. A few years later he was tapped to record promos on WOWI-FM (102.9), the area's powerhouse rap and R&B station. That relationship led to Big Kev's independent single "We Can Get It On," winning airplay on the station.

"Hearing that on the radio was the happiest day of my life," Herndon recalled. "I heard DJ Bee start with, 'World premier!' Then, he was cutting and scratching with the record. I was like, 'Oh, my God! I waited forever for this!' That was a high that could not be matched."

Big Kev was eventually invited to open shows for major acts like 50 Cent, Kanye West and Snoop Dogg. The Snoop show, which took place at The NorVa in Norfolk in 2003, was part of a promotional blitz funded in part by Ricky Cullipher, a local man whose own legal plight was chronicled in a Daily Press news series "Two lives. One bullet. No justice."

Herndon seemed to be close to a record deal with Loud Records around the time of his drug bust. Between his conviction and his sentencing, he was selected to rap on national television through the "Freestyle Friday" feature on the BET show "106 & Park."

"I lost everything, not just my freedom," he said, remembering when he learned that he would be heading to prison. "I felt like the world came to an end that day. I never want to have that feeling again."

Hip-hop support

In his attempt at hip-hop resuscitation, Herndon won't have to go it alone. He has support from a number of major figures in the Hampton Roads hip-hop community.

"If he hadn't gotten incarcerated, I think he would have made a bigger impression on the music world," said DJ Jack of Spade who spins tunes at WOWI-FM (102.9) as well as at clubs throughout the region. "He was putting out good music that caught a lot of people's ears."

The DJ kept in contact with Herndon while he was imprisoned and invited him to guest on his WOWI show "Sunday Night Spotlight" within days of his release.

Newport News rapper Double XL, known off stage as Terry Fenner, has already been working with Herndon on songs he penned behind bars.

Fenner believes it's not too late for Big Kev to rise again.

"Jay-Z is 43, Rick Ross is 37, Young Jeezy is 36. He's younger than all those guys," Fenner said.

"Hip-hop has changed. It used to be after you turned 30 you had to turn in your Adidas, buy a sweater and start listening to jazz," Fenner said. "But when I'm 60 years old, I'm going to be going to the jazz festival listening to Jay-Z and Snoop Dogg. These acts are going to survive because their fans are getting older with them."

Sharing his story

Big Kev is eager to return to performing, but he also wants to share his story with young people in a different forum. He wants them to learn from his mistakes, he said.

"I want to teach kids about being entrepreneurial, keeping their grades up, staying out of the streets," Herndon said. "I don't want anyone to go through what I did. They treat you like animals in prison. It's a sad, sad thing. It will mentally destroy you if you're not strong."

He's hoping to publish his prison-penned memoirs. He hopes his story will serve as both inspiration and cautionary tale. "My Life, My Pain, My Rhymes," his working title, is also the same name of a six-song EP he released before he was sent to prison.